Eric Bobo

Eric Bobo turned 20 on Thursday. The official celebration will take place Sunday at 6 p.m. when his six-man group takes to the stand at Birdland West in Long Beach, where he will be working the next several weekends. Bobo's life has been busy, turbulent and challenging since, only weeks after his 16th birthday, he inherited leadership of the band led by his father, the late William Coriea, a.k.a. Willie Bobo, long a giant of Latin jazz.

Eric Bobo turned 20 on Thursday. The official celebration will take place Sunday at 6 p.m. when his six-man group takes to the stand at Birdland West in Long Beach, where he will be working the next several weekends. Bobo's life has been busy, turbulent and challenging since, only weeks after his 16th birthday, he inherited leadership of the band led by his father, the late William Coriea, a.k.a. Willie Bobo, long a giant of Latin jazz.

Here is a schedule of today's events: 11 a.m.--Carnaval parade, featuring floats, costumed dancers and live music, begins at Long Beach Boulevard and 6th Street, moves south to Ocean Boulevard, west to Pine Avenue, then turns up Pine to Third Street. 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.--A "battle of the bands" will take place at the downtown Amphitheatre stage, Promenade and First Street. 1:30 to 6:30 p.m.--Children's entertainment is offered at the downtown Amphitheatre.

The success of a music festival can depend just as much upon the pleasantness of its environment as it does upon the quality of its performances. Saturday's opening day program at the first Long Beach Jazz Festival was a case in point. Like many summer celebrations, the festival used jazz as an umbrella word to encompass a collection of music that ranged from Latin and soul to fusion and funk.

For months, the unlikely group has been practicing its dance routine on the downtown Promenade in Long Beach in preparation for Saturday's Carnaval--what promoters are billing as the first outdoor festival of its kind in Southern California. Take Milton Critchfield: He is 61 and "you should see him dance." That's his wife talking. Now, Mary Critchfield is 52, and she's not bad herself. Then there is Catherine Nemes, who says she likes to show off a little.

Poncho Sanchez is really into it. Sitting behind his three black conga drums at the Vine Street Bar & Grill in Hollywood on a recent Thursday, Sanchez is knocking out a solo on the tune Latin/jazz tune, "Half and Half." The charismatic, full-bearded Sanchez attacks his drums with feverish thumps from his palms, stinging slaps from his fingers and furious palm-and-finger dances that make the drums seem to purr.